Leather stripping guide

ABSTRACT

A knife holder and guide for use when cutting long strips of suede and grain leather for braiding, lacing, leather macrame, and similar purposes, said guide comprising a cylindrical body member having a slot, a gauge block adjustable in the slot, keeper notches for the cutting blade, and an adjustable steadying shoe properly arranged for contact with the leather which is being stripped. Experienced and constant control of the knife holding guide is essential. A hole approximately three inches in diameter is cut at a central area of the large blank of leather and an edge on one side of the hole is inserted in the slot. Then, by pulling the leather through the slot and forcibly against the cutting edge of the knife, a long narrow strip of leather can be expeditiously cut for use as desired.

United States Patent [1 1 Linley Apr. 9, 1974 LEATHER STRIPPING GUIDE Primary Examiner-Donald G. Kelly Assistant Examiner-J. C. Peters 76 Inventor: Bruce N. Llnle 8127 Monte Park l 1 Ave" Apt. 1 l oaks Cam. Attogney, Agent, or F1rm-Clarence A. O Brlen; Har- 95628 vey aco son 2 ,1 2 [22] Filed Aug 4 97 ABSTRACT [211 App]' 283284 A knife holder and guide for use when cutting long strips of suede and grain leather for braiding, lacing, [52] US. Cl. 30/293, 30/284 l ather macrame, and similar purposes, said guide [51] Int. Cl B26b 29/02 om ri ing a cylindrical body member having a slot, 3 [58] Field Of Search 30/283, 284, 293 gauge block adjustable in the slot, keeper notches fOI the cutting blade, and an adjustable steadying shoe [56] References Cl ed properly arranged for contact with the leather which is UNITED STATES PATENTS being stripped. Experienced and constant control of 1,059,894 4/1913 Miley 30 293 the knife holding f is eSSeKIfiaI- A hole approxi- 2,559,291 7/1951 Engeln 30/283 mately three inches in diameter is cut at a central area 819,499 5/1906 Bateman.... 30/293 Of the large blank of leather and an edge on one side 2,978,808 4/1961 Reed 30/283 of the hole is inserted in the slot. Then, by pulling the 3,080,652 3/l963 Martinez 30/283 leather through the Slot and forcibly against the cut- 2,411,927 12/1946 Luke 30/293 ting edge f the k if 3 long nan-Ow Strip f leather 4 can be expeditiously cut for use as desired.

3 Claims, 5 Drawing Figures 54 24 I6 42 52 32 I 50 3 3 Leather 8 "Ll f 1 l4 I8 26 42 i 22 LEATHER STRIPPING GUIDE The present invention relates to a novel knife holder and guide which is expressly designed and adapted for manual adjustment and use and which embodies satisfactorily reliable facilities for time and labor saving use when cutting a relatively long strip of suede or grain leather, more particularly, a strip of a type which is acceptably usable for leather braiding, leather lacing, leather macrame and for similar purposes.

By way of introduction it may well be pointed out that the average piece or blank of leather is approximately six feet long and the cutting and stripping step is carried out by using an appropriate knife or razor blade. It follows that present prevailing leather stripping practice requires not only trained experience and skill but involves an expenditure of time and labor which for many reasons is undesirable.

There has long existed a need for a properly constructed and expeditiously usable tool or implement for cutting suitably long strips of leather which have been found to be necessary for braiding, lacing and similar purposes. The implement herein disclosed is simple, practical, and well serves the purposes for which it has been devised in that it is equipped with the needed as well as self-contained stripping and guiding components.

For background information and indicative, generally stated, of the art to which the invention pertains reference can be made to prior US. Pat. Nos. 2,387,450; 2,662,283; and 3,611,571.

Briefly the holding and stripping guide hereinafter set forth with particularity comprises an elongated rigid manually usable body having slot means for reception and guided retention of a severable edge portion of the leather blank or sheet, said body having keeper notches registering and cooperable with the associated slot means and which function to accommodate the insertable and removable blade of the stripping knife, the slot means opening through one end of the body as well as diametrically opposite sides and being closed at the opposite end. The closed end portion is provided with an effectively retained gauge block, that is, a block which is adjusted and regulated with appropriately accessible adjusting means. In addition to the means stated the open end portion of the slot is equipped with an adjustably mounted block pocketed in a recess provided therefor, said block being adjusted with the aid of an accessible setscrew and having a planar surface which provides a satisfactory shoe, said shoe functioning to stabilize the relationship between the guide and leather and insuring the provision of a long uniformly gauged leather or equivalent strip for such purposes as are desired.

These together with other objects and advantages which will become subsequently apparent reside in the details of construction and operation as more fully hereinafter described and claimed, reference being had to the accompanying drawings forming a part hereof, wherein like numerals refer to like parts throughout.

FIG. I is a view in perspective showing a fragmentary portion of the blank of leather or equivalent material after the desired three inch hole has been cut therein and showing the knife-holding and stripping guide and how it is positioned and readied for use.

FIG. 2 is an enlarged detail sectional view taken approximately on the plane of the section line 2-2 of FIG. 1 looking in the direction of the indicating arrows.

FIG. 3 is a horizontal section on the section line 3-3 of FIG. 2.

FIG. 4 is a view in perspective of the knife holder and guide with the knife omitted.

FIG. 5 is an end view on a small scale of the guide with the knife removed.

The material which is to be acted on and cut is denoted in several views of the drawing by the numeral 8. For convenience the material is here referred to as a piece or blank of leather which under ordinary circumstances is some six feet, more or less, in length. As previously mentioned the leather strip is ordinarily cut by a knife or razor blade, the length of the strip ranging from one to the other end of the overall larger blank or piece 8. In carrying out the principles of the present invention a hole which is approximately three inches in diameter is cut in the central area of the piece of leather, the hole being here designated by the numeral 10. One portion of the edge of the hole which is shown as partly cut in FIG. 1 is denoted at 12 and constitutes a portion of the final strip. The elongated metal or equivalent rigid body member is denoted by the numeral 14 and embodies a top surface 16, a bottom surface 18 and diametrically opposite side surfaces one of which is denoted by the numeral 20 in FIG. 4. In addition there is a substantially flat or planar surface 22 also designated as one end surface or proximal. Also, there is a similar opposite end surface 24 designated as the distal surface. The right hand end portion of the overall body member is bifurcated and the upper and lower bifurcations define slot means between themselves denoted generally by the numeral 26. As is evident particularly in FIGS. 1, 2 and 3, the bifurcations and also intervening slot means serves to accommodate that edge portion of the leather which is inserted in the slot. The axial end portion 24 of the body member is provided with a screw-threaded bore 28 into which the threaded shank 30 of an adjusting screw is threaded. The exposed end portion of the screw is provided with an enlarged knurled head 32 which provides a satisfactory finger-grip. As brought out in FIG. .3, the inner reduced and headed shank of the adjusting screw, that is the shank portion 34, is swivelly connected to a central portion of a substantially rectangular block 36 fitted with requisite nicety in the closed end portion of the slot. This block and adjusting screw provides a satisfactory depth gauge which functions in the manner shown in FIGS. 2 and 3. The blade 38 of the knife 40 is positioned and accommodatingly and satisfactorily held in a pair of substantially V-shaped keeper notches 42. These notches are not only aligned with each other for coordinate results but communicate with intended portions of the overall slot or slot means 26. For convenience the knife is provided at an upper end with appropriate handle means 44 (FIG. 1 and 2).

For best results it has been found desirable and in fact virtually essential to stabilize the use of the knife holding guide and this has been satisfactorily accomplished with the use of a stabilizing shoe 46. More specifically the shoe comprises a block of metal or the like which is fitted into a pocketing recess 48 provided in the end portion of the body member as best shown in FIG. 2. A screw-threaded bore is provided at 50 to accommodate the threaded portion of the setscrew 52, the upper end of th setscrew having a finger gripping knob 54 and the lower end having a reduced headed shank which is swivelly connected with the block, that is the shoe 46.

By use of the herein disclosed knife holding and leather stripping guide a continuous and uniformly straight strip of leather can be cut from the main piece or blank 8 in the manner illustrated. Persons conversant with the art to which the invention relates are aware that long and narrow as well as straight strips of leather are needed and necessary for leather braiding, leather lacing and for leather macrame.

It may well be reiterated that a first step in order to satisfactorily utilize the knife holding guide involves cutting a hole or opening some three inches in diame ter, for example the hole 10 in the leather piece 8 as illustrated in FIG. 1. The edge portion of the leather on one side of the hole is then inserted in the entrance or proximal end of the slot means after which the knife is inserted in the keeper seats or notches 42. By pulling the leather through the slot and to and beyond the cutting edge of the blade a long continuous straight strip of leather can be cut. The cross-sectional width of the strip can be adjusted by positioning the gauge block 36 in the slot means as illustrated in FIGS. 2 and 3 in particular.

In order to achieve an acceptable stripping result the leather must be held securely in the slot means and by providing the added facilities of the gauge block and thickness and stabilizing shoe different thicknesses of leather strips can be had. Then, too, it should be noted that the knife is bodily applicable and removable and can be readily removed and sharpened and replaced for best results. Experience has repeatedly shown that it is virtually essential to maintain constant control of the knife and holder in order to cope with and compensate for different textures and thicknesses of leather or equivalent sheet material.

The foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles of the invention. Further, since numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the invention to the exact construction and operation'shown and described, and accordingly all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of the invention.

What is claimed as new is as follows: I

1. For manual use when cutting braiding, lacing, macrame and like elongated strips within the encompassing'limits of an opening which has been cut in a large piece of leather, suede or the like, a stripping guide comprising, an elongated rigid body member having a median portion and a proximal end portion being bifurcated and defining upper and lower bifurcations, said bifurcations defining a slot, said slot being closed at one end and open at its other end for insertable reception and shiftable placement of an edge portion of the piece of leather which is to be cut and stripped off for use, one side of said median portion of said body member having a pair of companion keeper notches cooperatively aligned with each other, registering with said slot and opening outwardly through said one side of said body member, a guage block lodged and shiftably keyed in said closed end portion of said slot, said body member having an axial screw-threaded bore,'one end of said bore opening through the distal end of said body member, the other end of said bore being aligned with and communicating with the closed end portion of said slot, a gauge block adjusting screw adjustably threaded through said bore and having one end centrally and swivelly joined to said guage block and its other end projecting beyond said body member and provided with a finger gripping knob.

2. The stripping guide defined in and according to claim 1, and wherein a surface of the upper bifurcation is provided adjacent the proximal open end of said slot with a recess confronting and communicatng with said slot, a leather surface contacting and stabilizing shoe adjustably pocketed in said recess, and a setscrew adjustably and accessibly mounted on said upper bifurcation and having an actuating finger gripping knob at one end, the other end of said setscrew being operatively connected to said shoe.

3. The stripping guide defined in and according to claim 2, and wherein said body member is cylindrical in transverse cross-section, has flat ends, said shoe hosing a flat smooth surface registering with a coacting open end portion of said slot, said setscrews being disposed at right angles to each other and independently and selectively operable. 

1. For manual use when cutting braiding, lacing, macrame and like elongated strips within the encompassing limits of an opening which has been cut in a large piece of leather, suede or the like, a stripping guide comprising, an elongated rigid body member having a median portion and a proximal end portion being bifurcated and defining upper and lower bifurcations, said bifurcations defining a slot, said slot being closed at one end and open at its other end for insertable reception and shiftable placement of an edge portion of the piece of leather which is to be cut and stripped off for use, one side of said median portion of said body member having a pair of companion keeper notches cooperatively aligned with each other, registering with said slot and opening outwardly through said one side of said body member, a guage block lodged and shiftably keyed in said closed end portion of said slot, said body member having an axial screwthreaded bore, one end of said bore opening through the distal end of said body member, the other end of said bore being aligned with and communicating with the closed end portion of said slot, a gauge block adjusting screw adjustably threaded through said bore and having one end centrally and swivelly joined to said guage block and its other end projecting beyond said body member and provided with a finger gripping knob.
 2. The stripping guide defiNed in and according to claim 1, and wherein a surface of the upper bifurcation is provided adjacent the proximal open end of said slot with a recess confronting and communicating with said slot, a leather surface contacting and stabilizing shoe adjustably pocketed in said recess, and a setscrew adjustably and accessibly mounted on said upper bifurcation and having an actuating finger gripping knob at one end, the other end of said setscrew being operatively connected to said shoe.
 3. The stripping guide defined in and according to claim 2, and wherein said body member is cylindrical in transverse cross-section, has flat ends, said shoe having a flat smooth surface registering with a coacting open end portion of said slot, said setscrews being disposed at right angles to each other and independently and selectively operable. 